26 November 2019
A second year University of East Anglia student has received £50,000 in funding to develop a range of spectacles and sunglasses incorporating frames made from recycled fishing nets.
George Bailey, 19, secured the funding through the university’s Scale It award, which invests in those looking to take their business to the next step.
Six optical frames and a range of sunglasses will be launched by Coral Eyewear in 2020.
Mr Bailey has partnered with a company that sources recycled fishing nets and other plastics to produce material for brands such as Adidas and Stella McCartney.
The Coral Eyewear frames will be made by melting plastics and injecting them into a mould by workers at a family-run factory in Italy. Sustainable transportation will then be used to ship them to the UK.
Mr Bailey shared: “Most people tend to change their frames once a year and it is hoped that the quality of these frames will mean this happens less often. However, if people do need to change the lenses or would like a different style, colour or finish, they can send the frames back to us to recycle.”
Image credit: University of East Anglia
George Bailey, 19, secured the funding through the university’s Scale It award, which invests in those looking to take their business to the next step.
Six optical frames and a range of sunglasses will be launched by Coral Eyewear in 2020.
Mr Bailey has partnered with a company that sources recycled fishing nets and other plastics to produce material for brands such as Adidas and Stella McCartney.
The Coral Eyewear frames will be made by melting plastics and injecting them into a mould by workers at a family-run factory in Italy. Sustainable transportation will then be used to ship them to the UK.
Mr Bailey shared: “Most people tend to change their frames once a year and it is hoped that the quality of these frames will mean this happens less often. However, if people do need to change the lenses or would like a different style, colour or finish, they can send the frames back to us to recycle.”
Image credit: University of East Anglia
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